Board of Directors

Robert C. Oberbillig

Lifetime Achievement Award, Government and Public Sector Lawyer Division of the American Bar Association; Founding Member and Attorney for ISED since 1987; Director of Legal Service Programs in Iowa for 36 years retiring in 2002; Adjunct Clinic Professor with the Drake Law School Legal Clinic

Caitriona Lyons

Caitriona Lyons, a native of Ireland, began her work in the area of refugee and immigration programs many years ago and is privileged to be working for the US refugee program. She is currently the Refugee Program Coordinator for the State of Texas, Health and Human Services Commission. Prior to this, she worked in the Government Relations department within the Texas Department of Human Services as an immigration specialist. She has extensive work experience in the non-profit sector including the direction of a refugee resettlement program in Austin for USCCB.

Caitriona has a master’s in Human Services Administration from St. Edward’s University and is a licensed social worker. She is currently serving on the State Bar of Texas Immigration Affairs committee and is on the Board for the Institute for Social and Economic Development. She served in the capacity of Secretary for SCORR for two terms before being elected to the office of President for the State Coordinator’s of Refugee Resettlement association in 2004. In June 2006, Caitriona was awarded Outstanding American by Choice by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services for her work with immigrants and refugees in Texas.

J. D. Von Pischke

J.D. Von Pischke is chairman of Frontier Finance International, the Washington office of two German firms: ProCredit Holding and IPC, a microfinance consulting firm.

These three related companies promote micro and small business finance through 19 banks in Southeast Europe, Latin America and Africa, employing 12,000 local staff members. IPC provides initial management services for the ProCredit banking network. ProCredit Holding invests in these micro and small enterprise banks. Its assets exceed EUR 3.1 billion, with 750,000 loans outstanding. The Holding is owned by public sector promotional investors including IFC, KfW, FMO and BIO, and private investors such as the DOEN Foundation and IPC. Other investors include the Gates Foundation, the Omidyar-Tufts Microfinance Fund and TIAA-CREF (a large US pension fund).

Dr Von Pischke has an MBA from Columbia University and a PhD from Glasgow University. His dissertation focused on the political economy of farm credit in Kenya. He was a World Bank staff member for 20 years, specializing in rural finance, industrial finance and financial sector policy. His prior experience included positions at Chase Manhattan Bank in New York, London and Monrovia. As a US Peace Corps volunteer in Ethiopia he lectured at Haile Sellassie I University.

Dr Von Pischke was secretary of the Bank-Fund Staff Federal Credit Union for 9 years. As a contractor at KPMG for 2 years he directed USAID’s Financial Sector Development Project. He wrote Finance at the Frontier, published by the World Bank in 1991. He has co-authored or edited nine books, and has published numerous articles on development finance and related subjects. Since 2002 he has edited an annual series on financial sector development issues sponsored by KfW and others that is published in English by Springer Verlag.

Carla M. Decker, Chair

Carla is President/CEO of District Government Employees Federal Credit Union (DGEFCU.) Traditionally an employer-based credit union, DGEFCU acquired a community charter intended on serving the Latino population in Washington, D.C. Carla advanced DGEFCU’s mission through ACCESO, an innovative collaborative that links multiple credit unions in wealth building opportunities for the local immigrant and under-served community.

Carla is a recipient of the ‘Credit Union Grassroots Activist’ and ‘Professional of the Year’ awards by the National Association of Federal Credit Unions and the Maryland & DC Credit Union Association, respectively. She volunteers for various organizations, serves as Vice-Chair of the Community Investment Committee of the National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions, and as Director and founding member of the Network of Latino Credit Unions & Professionals.

Carla was born and raised in Lima, Perú. She holds a Bachelor’s in Finance and a Master’s in International Commerce & Politics. She is a Credit Union Development Educator.

C. Lynn Robson, President

C. Lynn Robson was appointed ISED’s President and Chief Executive Officer July 1, 2009. Lynn has a rich background in non-profit management, international development, economic development, and asset building. Her career as a non profit leader includes management of public health development in two provinces of Afghanistan for two years with Save the Children and country-wide agriculture and education program quality development for Catholic Relief Services across Afghanistan for a year and a half. Robson served as President and CEO of Gateway Development Corporation providing development services for three Montana Counties including the capital managing a substantial portfolio. She led Montana statewide organizations establishing community based SBDCs and Micro loan funds. Robson has owned a bookstore in Libby Montana and taught in public schools. Ms. Robson served on the International Board of Directors of Partners of America for two terms, an organization which forms hemispheric community development partnerships addressing indigenous people’s rights, women’s democratic action, infrastructure development such as water and sanitation, community development projects, and satellite public education. She has served in many other leadership roles, including the University of Montana’s President’s Council, Montana Community Foundation, Montana Economic Developers Association, and the Governor’s Council for Montana’s Future. She was a Presidential appointee to the U.S. Small Business Administration Region VIII Board of Advisors. Ms. Robson was a member of the founding Board of Directors of the Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO). Ms. Robson’s work at the Montana Department of Commerce led to two awards: a Presidential Award for Excellence in Microenterprise Development for a cost benefit analysis and a U.S. Small Business Administration national award for the outstanding business technical assistance program.

Carlton E. Meier, Treasurer

Carlton E. Meier is a financial and management consultant. Until he semi-retired, Carl was Vice President for Lutheran Social Services in New York City, following service as Director of Finance and Administration for Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service. Carl currently chairs the endowment committee for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's New Jersey Synod, is Vice Chairman for Community Bank of Bergen County, NJ and is a board member and Treasurer for the Association for Refugee Service Professionals in Dallas. He is also a Lifetime Honorary Trustee of West Bergen Mental Healthcare, Inc., Ridgewood, NJ. Prior to joining LIRS Carl was First Vice President and corporate controller for one of the 100 largest public bank holding companies in the US that is now a part of Bank of America. Carl is a graduate of Babson College with an MBA from the Eller Graduate School of Management at the University of Arizona.

Robert E. Falb, Secretary

Robert E. Falb, Partner, Arent Fox LLC, Washington, D.C. whose practice focuses on structuring commercial transactions, unique tax problems and complex corporate and income tax aspects of acquisitions and dispositions of businesses.  Mr. Falb is a member of the American Bar Association and the District of Columbia Bar Association.  He graduated from Harvard Law School, LLB, 1967 and Brown University, AB (magna cum laude; Phi Beta Kappa), 1964.  Mr. Falb serves as vice-chair and trustee of the Shakespeare Theatre Company. ISED welcomes Mr. Falb to the ISED Board of Directors August, 2009.

Rev. Christopher B. Morton, Vice Chair

Rev. Christopher (Chris) B. Morton is the executive director of Associated Ministries through  its more than 10 program areas in partnership with the City of Tacoma, Pierce County, and the State of Washington, as well as many nonprofit organizations builds community that is humane, compassionate, and just.  Chris was most recently the director of organizational development with the Minnesota Council of Churches where he oversaw refugee resettlement including its Refugee Supportive Housing Network; launched its anti-poverty initiative (The Benefit Bank), environmental health initiative, and weekly radio show Considering Faith: Common Ground for the Common Good on Air America; re-designed Partnerships with American Indian Communities, and Rural Churches-Rural Communities; and adopted its Immigration Policy Paper.

While consulting with nonprofit organizations since 2001, Chris was the part-time executive director of the Minnesota Food Association.  During the five years that Chris was director MFA, the organization opened the Agricultural Training Center, established the 200-member Great River Farm - Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), sustained its eight-year-old New Immigrant Agriculture Project, and launched Great River Foods Brokering Service.    His undergraduate degree in interpersonal communications was awarded by Ohio University, and Master of Divinity specializing in ecumenical and interfaith relations awarded from Lexington Theological Seminary.

Richard B. Lamporte

Richard B. Lamporte is Director for Business Development for Jhpiego, an affiliate of Johns Hopkins University, providing organizational leadership for developing and securing public and multilateral resources to address maternal and neonatal mortality, infectious diseases and family planning. Mr. Lamporte has served as Vice President for Development for Partners of the Americas, an organization which partners US states and central and south American countries to strengthen local government, youth employability and leadership, civil society, justice sector reform, trafficking in persons, sports for development, anti child labor, and women’s issues. Rich served as Consultant, for the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), as Planning Consultant to the United Nations Habitat Sustainable Cities Programme in Concepcion, Chile, as Municipal management Advisor as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Chile and planner for Comprehensive Health Investment Project (CHIP) of Virginia. Mr. Lamporte holds a Master of Urban and Regional Planning and Bachelor of Arts in Literature, History and Philosophy from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University with a Specialization in International Development. He completed a Masters Level Study Abroad in Urban Social Movements with the Social Science Research Institute in Santiago Chile. He servers as a board member of the Team River Runner organization promoting the health and healing of injured veterans through whitewater boating, is fluent in Spanish and proficient in Portuguese and is an Eagle Scout.

Zewud Debebe

Zewud Debebe is currently the Chief Human Resources Officer at DANYA International, Inc., Silver Spring, MD. Debebe has enjoyed a career as a senior human resources leader for over ten years with major corporations in the Washington, DC area. She holds a Master of Arts, General Administration/Human Resources from the University of Maryland and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Maryland. She is a Certified Achieve Global Trainer, she holds a Certificate of Completion, English as a Second Language Tutor, is a member of the Society for Human Resources Management, HR Network, and Project SAVE. She also serves as technical advisor to Gada International a local and International human capital solution provider and as sr. business development advisor for Zebra Jobs (HR solutions and online recruitment website for Africa). ISED welcomes Ms. Debebe to the ISED Board of Directors August, 2009.

Paul Stein

Paul D. Stein currently serves as Director Division of Refugee Services as the State Refugee Coordinator for the Colorado Department of Human Services. Paul also serves as the national president of the State Coordinators of Refugee Resettlement (SCORR). Mr. Stein was appointed Executive Director for the Rocky Mountain Survivors Center (RMSC) in January 2000 which organization he led through February, 2005. Stein led RMSC to national preeminence as an innovative and effective torture treatment program assisting clients to build new futures in new American communities. Paul Stein founded and directed the Paul Stein Research and Documentation organization from 1990 to 2000. The organization provided advice and strategy to immigration attorneys nationally for affirmative and defensive asylum claims, prepared asylum specific country condition support and developed testimony of leading human rights and academic experts in support of affirmative and defensive asylum claims. Mr. Stein worked on over 1200 individual cases for documentation and over 300 individual cases for affidavits, a significant percentage of which included torture histories. Early in his career, Paul produced sculpture, furniture, jewelry and photography for exhibitions and commissions and received the Colorado Council on the Arts and Humanities 1986 Creative Fellowship. Paul studied at Reed College in Portland Oregon, the Learning Community of Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio and the Visual Studies Workshop in Rochester, New York.